Josh Howard

More than 800 family and friends of UA student Josh Howard, 21, and his father Randy Howard, 47, gathered at Ironwood Ridge High School Saturday to mourn the loss of the two who died after a tragic boating accident.

Pictures hung in the lobby area during the memorial service to remember the two.

"Josh was real friendly and outgoing," said Jeff Pagan, a friend of Josh Howard's from church. "He was real caring and wanted to listen to what you had to say."

People clutched their Bibles and recited scriptures at the service. Both Josh and his dad were devout Jehovah's Witnesses who were deeply involved in their congregation and dedicated to their family.

"After being here today, I look around and wonder if this many people will show up for me," said David Goss, a family friend and member of Josh Howard's congregation. "I don't think this many will. That shows how many people (Josh and Randy) have touched."

Randy and Josh Howard left for a fishing trip with three other friends Oct. 25. When they failed to return that evening, authorities began searching for their boat, which was found three days later upside-down and about 100 miles southwest of Puerto Pe–asco, also known as Rocky Point.

Josh Howard's body is the only one that has been found, and the family called off the search for Randy Howard Nov. 5.

Friends and acquaintances, who came from Tucson and Casa Grande, filled the high school auditorium to pay their respects.

The immediate family sat at the front of the auditorium. People lined up to console and hug them.

With all the support the mother and brother were receiving, they were still visibly shaken by the past few weeks' events.

Roughly 100 people from Josh's congregation were at the service. They represented a small portion of a rather large crowd, which included people of many different backgrounds and races, Goss said.

Wally Pennick, a church elder, spoke of Josh as a good person who avoided the pitfalls of drugs, immorality and peer pressure to follow a holier path.

"He was a very intense young man," Pennick said. "(Josh and his brother) weren't perfect kids. They had their moments, but they all do."

Fellow Jehovah's Witnesses talked about how Josh used his skills from the UA to help develop building designs for future kingdom halls, which are houses of worship for Jehovah's Witnesses.

Josh never missed a meeting with the committee that was designing one of the kingdom halls.

A pamphlet distributed at the service said Josh's desire to build these halls was one of the main reasons he pursued architecture at the UA.

The crowd was teary and somber as they filed out of the auditorium.

"He was just an awesome guy to hang around with," said Brian Noah, a high school classmate and friend. "He always had something positive to say."

When asked what he missed most about his friend, his eyes turned glassy and he took a little time to reply.

"I'm just going to miss him in general."